Government Nursing Jobs

By Melanie Ullman
While nursing jobs in general are pretty much extremely secure and layoff proof no matter what the economy is doing. Government nursing jobs are even more secure in that the government does not layoff even in the toughest economic times. There are a number of government agencies that have government nursing jobs available including the Department of Veteran’s Affairs, Indian Health Network, National Institute of Health, Center of Disease Control, and the National Library of Medicine and all of the branches of the military. There are government nursing jobs for registered nurses, licensed practical nurses and nurse practitioners.

The three government entities with the highest demand for nurses are the Department of the Army, Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Veterans Affairs. Currently the average nurse’s salary for a government position is just over $63,000 ranking 20th in the highest average government salaries. You either have to have a family member in government service or know someone in government service to understand just how good a job with the federal government can be.

If you enlist in the armed forces and test into the health field you can train as a nurse and retire in twenty years with a full pension with benefits from the government with no restrictions on what you can earn and still get your pension. You can then apply for a civilian nursing job and with twenty years of experience will start near the top of the pay scale no matter where you might go. If you decide to get your bachelor’s degree in nursing and become a registered nurse while in the ROTC (Reserve Officer Training Corps) program you will enter whichever branch ROTC you were in as a lieutenant and after twenty year will retire with a much higher pension due to starting at a higher grade to begin with.

You will also have the opportunity to take positions overseas at foreign bases during which your housing is paid for completely and you are exempt from income taxes while in a foreign country. If you can rent out your house while overseas to cover your mortgage you can bank a great deal of money for retirement while having virtually no living expenses. American nursing experience is very sought after in our bases overseas.

Due to the fact that there is a large shortage of registered nurses in the government sector there are a number of incentives for nurses to get government nursing jobs that regular hospital and medical facilities either can not or will not match to recruit nursing talent. Government agencies offer scholarships, loans and even some types of loan repayment for recently graduated registered nurses to come to a government position. Signing bonuses are a new addition to the incentives various government agencies are using to attract nursing talent. If you can get the armed forces to pay for your treatment and then provide you a stable position for the next twenty or thirty years why wouldn’t you become a nurse?